Citi Anticipates Higher Commodity Prices Will Favor Basic Materials While Straining Auto and Mid-Tier Battery Firms
Commodity Price Impact: Commodity prices have risen significantly, benefiting the basic materials sector in China, particularly suppliers of aluminum, copper, and lithium, with positive ratings for companies like CHALCO and MMG.
Automakers Under Pressure: Rising material costs are expected to increase the production costs for mass-market electric vehicles, with smaller automakers like XPENG and GAC GROUP being more vulnerable compared to larger firms like BYD and Geely.
Battery Industry Outlook: Short-term challenges are anticipated for second-tier battery companies, while CATL is expected to maintain a strong position due to its bargaining power and upcoming production resumption.
Tech Sector Challenges: Xiaomi may face margin pressures from increasing memory costs, which significantly impact the bill of materials for its smartphones, potentially affecting profitability.
Trade with 70% Backtested Accuracy
Analyst Views on 00175
About the author


Market Overview: The Hang Seng Index (HSI) fell 3.5% to 24,400, with significant declines in the HSCEI and HSTECH, reflecting a total market turnover of HKD192.375 billion.
Tech Sector Performance: Major tech stocks like TENCENT, BABA-W, and MEITUAN-W experienced declines of 1.9% to 3.7%, with high short selling ratios indicating bearish sentiment.
Gold and Silver Stocks: Gold and silver stocks faced substantial losses, with companies like CHINAGOLDINTL and ZHAOJIN MINING dropping 4.5% to 6.2%, while ZIJIN MINING reported a profit increase but still saw a 5.4% decline.
Auto Sector Trends: BYD COMPANY and XPENG-W showed slight gains, while other auto stocks like XIAOMI-W and NIO-SW fell between 3.9% and 5.1%, indicating mixed performance in the sector.

Market Overview: The Hang Seng Index (HSI) fell by 3.5% to 24,400, while the Hang Seng Tech Index (HSTI) and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI) also experienced significant declines of 3.1%.
Active Heavyweights Performance: Major stocks like PING AN, HKEX, and XIAOMI saw substantial drops, with PING AN down 6% and HKEX down 3.9%, reflecting a trend of short selling across these companies.
Notable Declines Among Constituents: Companies such as CHINAHONGQIAO and LAOPU GOLD faced severe losses, with CHINAHONGQIAO dropping 11.7% and LAOPU GOLD down 10.7%, indicating a broader market downturn.
Short Selling Trends: A significant amount of short selling was observed, particularly in stocks like XIAOMI and AIA, with ratios exceeding 30%, highlighting investor pessimism in the current market conditions.

JPMorgan's Predictions: JPMorgan's research report forecasts that GEELY AUTO and SINOTRUK will exceed market expectations this year, despite challenges from rising demand and input costs.
Potential Upside for NIO and XPENG: NIO and XPENG are expected to show significant growth potential in the second half of 2026, driven by specific factors unique to each company.
Market Rebound for BYD and Leapmotor: BYD and Leapmotor are anticipated to recover gradually after their March earnings announcements, as the market has adjusted to more realistic earnings forecasts.
Overall Industry Outlook: The Chinese auto industry is projected to rebound in the second quarter of 2026, with a 30% increase in passenger vehicle demand, aided by improved customer traffic ahead of the Beijing Auto Show.
Zeekr 8X Launch: GEELY AUTO announced the launch of its luxury electric vehicle brand Zeekr's second flagship SUV, the Zeekr 8X, along with a technology release conference and pre-sales starting next Monday.
Market Reaction: Following the announcement, GEELY AUTO's stock price increased significantly, rising by 8.21% to HKD17.39, and continued to rise to HKD17.76, reflecting strong market interest and trading activity.
Market Performance: The HSI closed down 61 points (0.2%) at 25,898, with total market turnover dropping 23% to $254.481 billion.
Automaker Gains: NIO-SW surged 14.1% after reporting its first quarterly profit, while other automakers like GEELY AUTO and XPENG-W also saw significant increases.
Sector Highlights: Intelligent driving and battery stocks experienced notable gains, with CATL rising 9% and WERIDE-W increasing by 7.1%.
Energy and Coal Stocks: Power utilities and coal stocks performed well, with companies like HUANENG POWER and CHINA SHENHUA seeing increases of 3.5% and 4.6%, respectively.

Market Performance: The Hang Seng Index (HSI) fell by 61 points (0.2%) to close at 25,898, with a total market turnover of $254.48 billion.
Active Heavyweights: Major stocks like Meituan, CCB, and Xiaomi experienced declines, with Meituan down 2.1% and CCB down 1.6%, while Tencent and Alibaba also saw minor drops.
Top Gainers: CATL and Geely Auto were notable gainers, rising by 9% and 8.2% respectively, while other stocks like China Shenhua and XPeng also posted significant increases.
Notable Movements: 160 Health and 51World saw substantial gains of 28.5% and 28.2%, respectively, while Breton experienced a significant drop of 16.6%.







